SEND reforms 2026: what the Schools White Paper means for your child

What are the 2026 SEND reforms?

The 2026 SEND reforms are the government's plans to change how children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are supported in England. They are proposals. As of September 2026, none of them is law.

Here is what has happened so far:

• The Schools White Paper, "Every Child Achieving and Thriving", was published on Monday 23 February 2026 (Contact; Farrer & Co). A white paper is a set of plans the government puts forward before it changes the law.
• The King's Speech on 13 May 2026 announced an Education for All Bill to make the changes law (Contact). The Bill would apply to England only (Local Government Lawyer).
• A 12-week public consultation on the plans closed on Monday 18 May 2026 (Contact).

The Department for Education (DfE) says the Bill "confirms the government's intention to legislate. It is not the introduction of legislation" (DfE Education Hub). Contact reported that DfE would review the responses and publish its formal response "later this year" (Contact). As of September 2026, we could not confirm whether that response has been published, or whether the Bill has been formally introduced to Parliament.

Has anything changed for my child yet?

No. The law in England is still the Children and Families Act 2014, the SEND Regulations 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice from January 2015. Contact, the charity for families with disabled children, puts it plainly: "For now, existing SEND law remains unchanged. If you are told that support has changed because of the white paper, this is not correct" (Contact).

DfE says: "No changes to the support given by EHCPs will begin before September 2030" (DfE Education Hub).

So today, as before:

• Your child can get SEN support at nursery or school based on their needs. IPSEA, a SEND legal charity, says "A child does not need a formal diagnosis in order to receive support in school" (IPSEA).
• You can ask the council for an EHC needs assessment yourself (Children and Families Act 2014, section 36).
• The council must decide within 6 weeks whether to assess (SEND Regulations 2014, regulation 5) and send the final plan within 20 weeks of your request (regulation 13).
• An existing EHCP must still have a review meeting, with a decision afterwards on whether to keep, change or end it (SEND Regulations 2014, regulation 20).
• You can still appeal to the SEND Tribunal (GOV.UK).

What is being proposed?

The White Paper sets out a new, tiered system of support. Most children's needs would be met in ordinary lessons, through adaptive teaching, calm environments and early help. There would then be three further levels: "Targeted", "Targeted Plus" and "Specialist" (DfE Education Hub). Some details are still unclear.

Individual Support Plans for every child with SEND

DfE describes an Individual Support Plan (ISP) as "a digital record of your child's needs, the day-to-day support your child will have, and how it will be given". Teachers and parents could both see it. "Every school, nursery and college will have a legal duty to create an Individual Support Plan for every child with SEND", and every child with an EHCP would have one too (DfE Education Hub).

Contact welcomed the legal right to a plan, but adds: "As far as we can tell, there is no proposed legal duty for settings to deliver the support in an ISP." In Contact's reading, each ISP would be reviewed every year, and if one is not working, parents would use the school's complaints process "and then an independent panel for redress" (Contact). The law firm Geldards says ISPs are understood not to carry the same legal force or tribunal appeal rights as EHCPs, "although this has yet to be clarified" (Geldards).

EHCPs for children who need specialist provision

In the "Specialist" level, a child would have "a Specialist Provision Package and EHCP in a mainstream or specialist setting" (DfE Education Hub). Contact's reading is that "Only children who have SSPs [Specialist Provision Packages] will have EHC plans", and that the White Paper gives "no definition of complex needs". Contact also reports that councils could turn down a parent's choice of setting "based on cost", and that there would be "a fast-track assessment process for under-fives with very complex needs" (Contact).

Reviews at the end of each key stage

The King's Speech briefing described a national EHCP template, and a move "from a system of annual reviews to reviews at the end of every key stage for school-age children, with parents able to request an earlier review" (Local Government Lawyer). That is about EHCPs. It is separate from Contact's reading that ISPs would be reviewed every year.

A different role for the SEND Tribunal

The briefing says "The role of the SEND tribunal will also be reformed" (Local Government Lawyer). Contact's chief executive was "relieved to see the SEND tribunal is retained". Contact's reading of the detail is: "Under the proposals, the Tribunal will no longer have the power to name a school. It will only be able to request the local authority to reassess" (Contact). The National Autistic Society said it was "deeply concerned that reforms to EHCPs and the SEND Tribunal may risk autistic young people missing out on the school place that is right for them" (National Autistic Society). The wording of the Bill will show what actually changes.

What could the reforms mean for young children?

For a young child, the answer depends on whether they already have an EHCP and what kind of school they attend. This is how DfE describes the plans (DfE Education Hub):

• EHCP in a special school: the later check described below does not apply. The King's Speech briefing adds that "Every child with a specialist setting place in September 2029 will be able to stay in a specialist setting until they finish" (Local Government Lawyer).
• EHCP in a mainstream school, aged 7 or under: DfE's plans concern "children who are seven years old or younger today". In "three years' time, after significant investment", there would be an assessment of whether their needs could be better met with an ISP.
• EHCP in a mainstream school, older children: DfE says "everyone else will keep their existing EHCP until at least 16".
• No EHCP yet: today's law applies, so you can ask for an assessment now. If the reforms go ahead, new EHCPs would be for children who need a Specialist Provision Package.

Other readings fill in some detail. Geldards describes the younger group as children in Year 2 or below, who would be reassessed when they move from primary to secondary school (Geldards). Contact says children with EHCPs in mainstream schools "will not be moved to ISPs until at least 2030", and only when they move between school stages (Contact).

DfE says "No child is losing support they need" (DfE Education Hub). The government has also promised a "triple lock" of protections so that "no child loses effective support already in place" (Local Government Lawyer).

What should I do now?

Use the rights your child has today. They apply until Parliament changes the law.

1. Ask for help now. If your child needs more support, talk to the SENCO and ask for a review of their SEN support. See SEN support or an EHCP? for what good support looks like.
2. Request an EHC needs assessment if your child needs one. Geldards confirms that "you can still apply for an EHC needs assessment and EHC plan" (Geldards). IPSEA has a free template letter (IPSEA). Our guide on how to request an EHC needs assessment takes you through it.
3. Keep annual reviews on track. Your child's EHCP must still be reviewed at least every 12 months (SEND Code of Practice).
4. Appeal if a decision is wrong. You usually need a mediation certificate first. The deadline is 2 months from the date the council sent its decision or 1 month from the certificate, whichever is later (SEND Code of Practice, para 11.23). In 2024/25, 99% of the SEN appeals decided by the tribunal went in favour of the appellant, the parent or young person who appealed. That means the appellant won most of what they appealed about (Ministry of Justice).
5. Keep records. Save letters, reports and emails. Write down dates, and what support your child actually gets each week.
6. Get it in writing. If you are told support has changed "because of the reforms", ask for that in writing and get advice straight away.

SEND reforms timeline

Dates up to May 2026 are confirmed. Later dates come from different sources, and they do not all line up. For example, one law firm describes new thresholds being applied from 2029/30, while DfE says no changes to EHCP support will begin before September 2030.

We will update this page as the Education for All Bill goes through Parliament. This version was checked on 28 September 2026.

Where can I get advice about the SEND reforms?

You can get free, independent advice about your child's rights now and how the plans might affect them:

• Your local SENDIASS: free, impartial information and advice on SEND in your area. Find yours through the Council for Disabled Children, or see our help page.
• IPSEA: free legal advice by appointment, a tribunal helpline, and template letters (IPSEA).
• SOS!SEN: a free, term-time helpline run by volunteers (SOS!SEN).
• Contact: a free helpline on 0808 808 3555 for families with a disabled child anywhere in the UK (Contact).
• National Autistic Society: advice on education for autistic children.